FA can't afford a Cup half empty

The romance of the FA Cup urgently
needs to work for English football's ruling body this weekend to aid a
desperate search for a new sponsor for the ailing tournament.

Energy provider E.ON's
£9million-a-year backing expires after the Cup final on May 14 and a
blue-chip replacement somehow has to be found before the qualifying
rounds of next season's competition in August.

Empty Cup: Only 7,500 fans turned up for the replay between Wigan and Bolton

That gives the FA and their sponsorship agents IMG just six months to secure a deal crucial for the FA's finances. This is less than half the time it took searching for an England team partner before Vauxhall got on board.

The sponsorship task is made even more difficult by the hiatus over the format of the FA Cup next season. The FA are involved in a wide consultation process over radical changes, which are facing strong opposition - not least from their own FA Challenge Cup Committee.

But even if few changes, if any, are eventually made to the world's most famous knockout competition, the debate will confuse potential sponsors throughout the search period.

The FA have made their first reforming move under new chairman David Bernstein. He has won support from the board to consult at least with diehard councillors over the appointment of two independent directors - which the Government are demanding. But even that hard-fought concession comes with a catch. It is proposed the fresh board members will be in addition to the existing 12-strong committee - rather than taking two of their places - so diluting any influence they might have. The most threatened members of the FA board, Michael Game and John Ward, wouldn't have been in favour if it had meant losing their seats at the table.

Sky Sports presenter Ben Shephard might have replaced Richard Keys as compere for the Champions League final ticket launch at City Hall this week.

But the chances of the lightweight Shephard (right) also succeeding Keys as Sky's lead football host look to be receding fast - despite the former GMTV host being the marquee appointment of Sky Sports overlord Barney Francis.

In the jostling for football presenter prominence since the departure of Andy Gray and Keys, Shephard has hardly featured.

When Kenny Dalglish is confirmed as the permanent Liverpool manager, insiders are standing by for a power battle with director of football strategy Damien Comolli. Dalglish has an old-school managerial attitude of liking to be in sole command. So how he copes with Comolli will be an intriguing sub-plot, especially as Dalglish has expert knowledge himself of European football.

Cricket test for agents

JUST as football is disbanding its regulation of agents because FIFA haven't the appetite to control them, cricket is going down the licensing route.

From the start of the season, the ECB will require middle men to pass an exam and pay an administration fee for a licence.

Meanwhile, leading football agent Jon Smith, 58, whose profession aren't noted for their charitable instincts, is running the North Pole Marathon in April in an attempt to raise £100,000 to pay for a young cancer victim's treatment.

BBC have delayed moving 40 staff in their sports news department to Manchester because of 'technology issues'. They are now due to migrate in January and February, but don't bet against another postponement until after the London Olympics, which makes far more sense.

Conference club Wrexham are being linked with a takeover by the controversial Steve Cleeve, who was banned from being a company director for eight years in 2000 after mis-selling champagne and port investments. Former Chelsea chairman Ken Bates also suspended memorabilia collector Cleeve's membership of the executive club at Stamford Bridge following a number of scams, saying the club were 'fed up with his shenanigans'.